Collective Mind Research Articles

Do fear-of-COVID-19 and regional identity matter for the linkage between perceived CSR and brand evangelism? A comparative analysis in South Asia

PurposeThere is a dearth of evidence on how and when perceived corporate social responsibility (PCSR) contributes to brand evangelism in the consumer behavioural literature, especially during a pandemic situation. In an attempt to examine this phenomenon, this study investigates the effect of fear-of-COVID-19 (Coronavirus disease 2019) and regional identity on PCSR and brand evangelism effect in the South Asian retail context. It theorises linkages mainly from behavioural inhabitation system theory and social identity theory.Design/methodology/approachA survey was administered to a representative sample of 2,242 retail consumers representing Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and India.FindingsThe results revealed a positive impact of PCSR on brand evangelism, but interestingly varying levels of strength of the key relationships based on country-wise fear-of-COVID-19 and regional identity during the pandemic.Practical implicationsFor the first time, the results of this research shed light on incorporating consumers’ regional identity as well as consumer fear as cultural predictors for better explaining the PCSR and brand evangelism link of nations within a region. This has implications for both theory and practice in the domain of consumer behaviour.Originality/valueThe study reflects its originality by revealing the relevance of country level social identity and negative emotions of nations that can manipulate the business results of corporate ethical responsiveness from a consumer culture theory perspective, especially during and just after a crisis. These results underlie what is active inside consumer black box by explaining as to what external stimuli drive consumer collective and moral mind set in a given culture. This adds to the body of knowledge on ethical consumption behaviour more specific to consumer–brand interaction in market crises.

Diaspora weavers: Collective memory and identity of Pagatan Weaving South Kalimantan

This study aims to analyze more deeply the collective memory of Bugis weaver community in Pagatan through the form of creating weavers’ works that are not only a residue of the past, but also as a representation of the memories collected for their sustainable cultural identity. This research is based on Bugis community in Pagatan as an illustration of diaspora community that continues to carry out its traditions from their ancestors. This research uses qualitative methods, namely observation, in-depth interviews, and FGD (Focus Group Discussion). The purposive technique is carried out to identify informants that have been determined based on the research objectives. This study was analyzed using Maurice Halbwachs’ collective memory theory which said that collective memory embedded in the collective mind of the community forms the story of the past as part of the social identity of the community. This research finds that the systematic sequence of the past is like a collection of threads that are intertwined at a certain time, woven into one and cannot be separated from the present point of view. This research concludes that weavers are also able to manage its collective memory by expressing it through forms of Pagatan Weaving motifs as a strategy to survive its identity.

The сoncept of the national culture in German romanticism: Sourсes and historical background

In Novalis’s works, the reaction of German Romanticism to the Enlightenment was civilizational: By the German world, both the French monarchy and Republic were viewed in a negative light. Thus, the Novalis’s philosophy developed the concept of national culture, which the movement “Storm and Onslaught”, led by J. G. Herder, opposed to French classicism of the 17th–18th centuries. According to Herder, the folk’s culture is formed through the psychological exploration of nature in myths and folklore, fixed in language. The “organic nature” of culture links folklore with the Middle Age and Modern poetry as the new forms of the dialogue with nature. This idea was consolidated by the figure of Faust, chosen by the Sturmers and Goethe as the hero of the “masterpiece” summarizing the national poetic path. Novalis elevated Catholicism to the cult of the earth, and the collective mind was connected with it by magic. He saw the institution of this union as an “ideal” Prussia where self-knowledge unites citizens, and the monarch unites the people and nature as an esoteric master. The French monarchy divided the people by cultivating selfishness. The prerequisites of this opinion were indicated by J. Le Goff and L. Karsavin who stated the existence of two types of cultures, which emerged as a result of the Roman conquest of Europe. For the national ones, who retained their languages and with them the connection with pre–Roman mythology and folklore, the introduced ancient norm and Christianity became forms of self-development. For the newly emerged unities west of the Rhine, they became the foundation of the cultural convention.

The role of effective communication and collective intelligence in digital transformation of a company

The subject of the study is the role of effective communications and the mechanism of meaning emergence in the collective mind of a complex commercial social and technical system. We have synthesized the provisions of traditionally studied separately spheres of knowledge such as the communication theory, collective intelligence, corporate culture management, and motivation theory in the context of digital transformation of companies. The analysis of these concepts together provides a deeper understanding of the knowledge acquisition processes necessary to improve digital transformation effectiveness. The paper formulates the effective communication management principles that contribute to tacit knowledge identification and its successful formalization. We have proposed a distinction of related terms such as data, information, knowledge, understanding, wisdom, and vision. The applied nature of the study is to deepen the understanding of the mechanism of innovative ideas emergence and to propose measures to minimize the risks of managing the communication system in organizations. The following approaches have been considered: values management, emotional intelligence development, decision-making routes and motivation mechanisms personalization, communication formats specification. The article may be useful for researchers whose interests include innovative trends in management, entrepreneurial activity development and enterprises digitalization effectiveness. The study results may be useful for managerial practitioners who develop and implement strategies for enterprises innovative development.

IN-MEMORY INTELLIGENT COMPUTING

Context. Processed big data has social significance for the development of society and industry. Intelligent processing of big data is a condition for creating a collective mind of a social group, company, state and the planet as a whole. At the same time, the economy of big data (Data Economy) takes first place in the evaluation of processing mechanisms, since two parameters are very important: speed of data processing and energy consumption. Therefore, mechanisms focused on parallel processing of large data within the data storage center will always be in demand on the IT market.
 Objective. The goal of the investigation is to increase the economy of big data (Data Economy) thanks to the analysis of data as truth table addresses for the identification of patterns of production functionalities based on the similarity-difference metric.
 Method. Intelligent computing architectures are proposed for managing cyber-social processes based on monitoring and analysis of big data. It is proposed to process big data as truth table addresses to solve the problems of identification, clustering, and classification of patterns of social and production processes. A family of automata is offered for the analysis of big data, such as addresses. The truth table is considered as a reasonable form of explicit data structures that have a useful constant – a standard address routing order. The goal of processing big data is to make it structured using a truth table for further identification before making actuator decisions. The truth table is considered as a mechanism for parallel structuring and packing of large data in its column to determine their similarity-difference and to equate data at the same addresses. Representation of data as addresses is associated with unitary encoding of patterns by binary vectors on the found universe of primitive data. The mechanism is focused on processorless data processing based on read-write transactions using in-memory computing technology with significant time and energy savings. The metric of truth table big data processing is parallelism, technological simplicity, and linear computational complexity. The price for such advantages is the exponential memory costs of storing explicit structured data.
 Results. Parallel algorithms of in-memory computing are proposed for economic mechanisms of transformation of large unstructured data, such as addresses, into useful structured data. An in-memory computing architecture with global feedback and an algorithm for matrix parallel processing of large data such as addresses are proposed. It includes a framework for matrix analysis of big data to determine the similarity between vectors that are input to the matrix sequencer. Vector data analysis is transformed into matrix computing for big data processing. The speed of the parallel algorithm for the analysis of big data on the MDV matrix of deductive vectors is linearly dependent on the number of bits of the input vectors or the power of the universe of primitives. A method of identifying patterns using key words has been developed. It is characterized by the use of unitary coded data components for the synthesis of the truth table of the business process. This allows you to use read-write transactions for parallel processing of large data such as addresses.
 Conclusions. The scientific novelty consists in the development of the following innovative solutions: 1) a new vector-matrix technology for parallel processing of large data, such as addresses, is proposed, characterized by the use of read-write transactions on matrix memory without the use of processor logic; 2) an in-memory computing architecture with global feedback and an algorithm for matrix parallel processing of large data such as addresses are proposed; 3) a method of identifying patterns using keywords is proposed, which is characterized by the use of unitary coded data components for the synthesis of the truth table of the business process, which makes it possible to use the read-write transaction for parallel processing of large data such as addresses. The practical significance of the study is that any task of artificial intelligence (similarity-difference, classification-clustering and recognition, pattern identification) can be solved technologically simply and efficiently with the help of a truth table (or its derivatives) and unitarily coded big data . Research prospects are related to the implementation of this digital modeling technology devices on the EDA market. KEYWORDS: Intelligent

Tales of the sea: Seafarers’ sense of place in the management of socialities and safety culture at sea

Workplaces can be tricky for migrant workers like seafarers to navigate, especially on board cargo ships which in recent times have become multi-ethnic in composition. Diverse cultures and individual differences can pose challenges to working relationships on board, which in turn can have negative implications on operational safety. In this context, the article highlights the role of seafarers’ sense of place in enacting harmonious socialities and safety culture on board. Sense of place refers to marked positioning in space where seafarers conduct themselves in relation to others in terms of hierarchy. In turn, this helps fashion the collective mind among seafarers as a way of dealing with the challenges of life at sea, including operational safety on board. This article draws from data gathered from fieldwork on board four ocean-going cargo ships and informal conversations with seafarers in seafarer centers in the United Kingdom between 2010 and 2020.

The Collective Mind Approached Through the Prism of Beliefs

This article aims to bring to the forefront the approach to the concept of faith from a philosophical and psychological perspective in order to unravel the functioning mechanism of the collective mind as a tool for interpreting reality. The problem raised by the study of beliefs is an area of research that could shed a lot of light on the analysis and knowledge of human behaviour within collectivities in order to unravel the mysteries that led to the emergence of totalitarianism. In order to analyse the concept of faith from a philosophical perspective, this paper will approach a synthetic analysis through three great thinkersː David Hume, Gustave Le Bon and José Ortega y Gasset, authors who have glimpsed the immense potential offered by understanding these levers for deciphering historical events.

How to preserve society and the biosphere in the technogenic world

At the beginning of the last century, V.I. Vernadsky believed that associated humanity would act rationally in accordance with the collective mind, a powerful science, changing the biosphere in a direction favorable to society. At the turn of the XX–XXI centuries, technocratic social theories justify the transition of mankind to post-industrial development with a high level and quality of life on the planet. But the modern technogenic world is developing in accordance with the interests of capitalistically developed countries focused on their own well–being due to the accelerated destruction of world biological resources, the comprehensive expansion of the artificial environment of life – the urban technosphere, which results in the destruction of soil cover as the basis of biospheric life, deterioration of human population health and shortening of his life expectancy. Over the past two decades, the interrelated integration of the processes of social, artificial and biological development has been studied by scientists of the Interdisciplinary Scientific and Philosophical School of Socio-Technogenic Development of the World and come to the conclusion that the technosphere shell of life is rapidly taking the place of the age-old soil shell of the biosphere development on land. People should not allow the death of the biosphere on land, which leads us to the need to approve a safe socio-biosphere strategy for the development of life instead of a socially man-made way of its destruction.

A Brain-inspired Theory of Collective Mind Model for Efficient Social Cooperation

A Brain-inspired Theory of Collective Mind Model for Efficient Social Cooperation

Unconferencing methodology as a cultural disrupter in higher education: Enabling reflections on promoting inclusivity, diversity, and equitable spaces

In applying the collective mind to challenges in higher education, there is hope for innovative solutions. HELTASA’s approach to adapting the unconference methodology during the annual learning and teaching (un)conference in 2021 demonstrated its vision to reflect on a re-imagined inclusive higher education using the questions: Sivela phi? (where do we come from?), Si phi? (where we are?), and Siya phi? (where are we going?). This paper reflects on how the unconferencing methodology was used as a cultural disrupter during the HELTASA’s (un)conference. We identify with ‘culture’ as emphasising active meaning-making instead of unchanging, static ideas by homogenous groups. ‘Culture’ is dynamic, and it changes over time. In the context of unconferencing methodology, cultural disruption refers to a deliberate effort to challenge and disrupt traditional cultural norms and values to promote greater inclusivity, diversity, creativity and problem-solving. The unconference is intended to disrupt current thinking and practices in conferences and open higher education spaces for creative, critical dialogue and innovation. Cultural disruption plays a transformative role in deconstructing established norms of knowledge, identity, and practices within higher education. The unconference seeks to challenge the prevailing power dynamics inherent in higher education and mirrored in traditional conferences by adopting a participant-driven and focused approach. The unconference supports the notion of collective thinking or collaboration, which re-frames knowledge boundaries as dynamic inter-relationships with due weight given to reflective ways of knowing (Brown, 2015). This paper uses the Reflection and Critical Thinking Model by Mugumbate, et al. (2021) as a framework to explore and understand how cultural disruptions were implemented and experienced during the planning and execution of the (un)conference itself. This paper critically reflects on the HELTASA (un)conference Call, cultural representations, presentation types, and structure of the unconference to share possible cultural disruptions. This paper's reflections delve into the effectiveness of unconferencing in higher education as a potent tool for cultural disruption in relation to power dynamics, participation, individual and collective thinking, and the imperative of amplifying diverse voices. Unconferencing, through its disruption of cultural norms and values, can promote greater innovation and creativity by enabling the incorporation of a wider range of perspectives and ideas. Additionally, unconferencing can create more inclusive and equitable spaces where traditionally marginalised voices are provided a platform to be heard and represented.

MITUL TRĂDĂTORULUI: EVANGHELIA LUI IUDA DUPĂ LEONID ANDREEV

This paper is an analysis from a mythological-theoretical perspective of Leonid Andreyev's short story Judas Iscariot. Starting from the ideas of Roland Barthes and Mircea Eliade on myth, it examines how Andreyev contradicts and reshapes the myth of the betrayer within the belief system of Orthodox Christianity. The theme of this paper was chosen because of the importance of this myth in popular culture and because of the way in which the depiction of the antagonist in a broader and more intimate way disrupts the views about the traitor embedded in the collective mind. Andreyev's reinterpretation challenges the established significations, encourages critical thinking, and invites readers to question the established narratives. Thus, the myth of the betrayer in Andreyev's reinterpretation offers valuable insights into human nature, morality, and the complex dynamics of betrayal.

IMAGINEA EROILOR ÎN ERA DIGITALĂ – HAIDUCII BABA NOVAC ȘI GRUIA LUI NOVAC

The fascinating stories of the outlaw Baba Novac and his son Gruia can be found dressed up in various versions and in digital format. By accessing the Internet, we will come across texts (stories, ballads, legends) that help us much more easily discover, through a pertinent analysis, what are the main moral and physical features of these popular heroes. It is interesting to watch how the two historical characters become contemporaries by accessing specialized websites, and not only that, and how they can positively influence the virtual collective mind. Thus, this information puzzle represents a real support in the current endeavor, which consists in the contemporaneous placement of information regarding the outlaws Baba Novac and Gruia Novac

Shakespeare’s reflective genre. On reflection involved in the staging of culture

The opposition of two terms, tradition vs reflection, is laid at the foundation of the construct which is often accepted now as a representation of world culture in the process of its staging. ‘Tradition’ stands for the collective mind and the ritual/norm, while ‘reflection’ covers the growth of the individual talent liberating itself from the normative authority of generic and other prescriptions. The borderline — beyond which the power of genre with its rules, rigidly established in the classical poetics, visibly loses its prescriptive power and individual talent takes over — is usually located somewhere between the late Renaissance and the early romantic era. Among the generic forms thatrepresent a new reflective genre, S. Averintsev reckons the novel by Cervantes, Shakespeare’s tragedies, Montaigne’s essays, Pascal’s intellectual prose... In the present article, the renaissance sonnet is added to this list due to the role it played in ‘the origin of the modern mind’ (P. Oppenheimer) and its three hundred years of domination in European lyric poetry. The sonnet, with special attention given to Shakespeare’s sequence, is analyzed after a model elaborated by M. Bakhtin for the novel and by Y. Tynyanov for the Russian ode.

Exploring the impact of partner match on business model innovation: the mediating role of interfirm dynamic capabilities-based on ecosystem orchestration perspective

PurposeWithin the context of an open innovation business environment, the frequent interaction and coordination activities among heterogeneous partners have a significant impact on enterprises' business model. Nevertheless, fewer empirical research has been made to explore how to match external partners and update organizational dynamic capabilities at an ecosystem level. Therefore, this paper attempts not only to investigate the direct impact of partner match on different business model innovation (BMI) themes (efficiency-centered BMI and novelty-centered BMI) but only to shed light on the pivotal mediating role of interfirm dynamic capabilities.Design/methodology/approachThis paper utilized the methodology of Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to investigate the impact of diverse partner selection criteria and interfirm dynamic capabilities on two distinctive themes of BMI. More than 20 industry clusters with multiple industries were selected as representatives of the creative ecosystem, predominantly from the Yangtze River Delta region. Valid data were collected from 254 managers by both online questionnaires and offline interviews.FindingsThe findings of the study show that different partner match criteria have distinct direct impacts on BMI themes. Partner complementary and partner synergy, deriving from the “task-related criteria”, are significantly correlated with both EBMI and NBMI. Conversely, partner compatibility, deriving from “Partnering-related Criteria”, shows a positive correlation with EBMI but not NBMI. Furthermore, compare the indirect effect on EBMI, the paper’ results demonstrate interfirm dynamic capabilities as mediator can more maximize external benefits to promote NBMI.Practical implicationsThe study findings effectively help enterprises implement different BMI themes. From a management perspective, whether pursuing EBMI or NBMI, enterprises should consciously seek partners who can provide complementary support or share mutual goals across diverse industries. This strategic approach can significantly enhance the opportunities for sustainable and innovative business development. Furthermore, to successfully accomplish NBMI, enterprises must cultivate interfirm dynamic capabilities encompassing a comprehensive range of cross-organizational innovation capacities, such as bolstering organizational learning capability, establishing interactive network platforms to enhance coordination capabilities and engaging in integrative activities to foster a collective mindset.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the match theory by introducing three critical matching criteria, enabling enterprises to discern partners based on diverse organizational characteristics. Additionally, this paper broadens the scope of the dynamic capability literature by adopting a network perspective to strengthen interaction and relationship mechanisms. The authors primarily elucidate the concept of interfirm dynamic capabilities as a formative higher-order model formed by three sub-capabilities (absorptive capacity, coordination capability and collective mind). Finally, this paper combines matching theory with dynamic capacity theory to the field of BMI, which adds depth and complexity to the existing ecosystem innovation research.

GIS, satellite image and risks in urban and Peri-urban areas; methodological aspects

Evoking the risk, even in urban areas, brings us back almost mechanically to the risks of flooding, or even silting up in certain regions. However, there are many other risks in cities that are still little or no explored using GIS solutions. We will mention in particular the problems encountered in the outskirts of cities and so-called sensitive areas, but also those due to the very configuration of certain neighborhoods (concentration of buildings, absence of support infrastructure) which generate risk situations. , or rather danger. Of course, we cannot overlook the problem of old neighborhoods that are abandoned in certain regions, but where populations still live and are exposed to multiple dangers following the continuous dilapidation of buildings. Finally, it is useful, even necessary, to also mention the perception of risk, which is sometimes extremely vague, in the minds of populations who end up generating their own risk themselves. In this article, we briefly examine the notion of risk, its perception in the collective mind and its consequences in everyday life. We then present, on a practical example, the contribution of GIS solutions and satellite imagery to the analysis and forecasting of risk in urban areas. The examples are taken from Algerian towns in the pre-Saharan zone. We will take the city of Laghouat as an example and we will develop the aspect of risk generation by the individual and society as a whole; we will also see how the local authority contributes to this situation of generation of risk or danger and, above all, how it can remedy it.

Theory of collective mind.

Theory of mind research has traditionally focused on the ascription of mental states to a single individual. Here, we introduce a theory of collective mind: the ascription of a unified mental state to a group of agents with convergent experiences. Rather than differentiation between one's personal perspective and that of another agent, a theory of collective mind requires perspectival unification across agents. We review recent scholarship across the cognitive sciences concerning the conceptual foundations of collective mind representations and their empirical induction through the synchronous arrival of shared information. Research suggests that representations of a collective mind cause psychological amplification of co-attended stimuli, create relational bonds, and increase cooperation, among co-attendees.

Manifestări etno-folclorice ale grupurilor etnice din Bucovina între dinamism și conservare

In the present work, we aim to create an overview of the specifics of the existing ethnic groups in Bukovina, considering, in particular, manifestations of their folklore in the context of the present. Likewise, another objective of the research is represented by the monitoring of these folklore facts, in order to observe both the dynamism and the preservation of the identity. Thus, the existence of a favourable climate within the Bukovina community favoured the formation of a multi-ethnic space in which each ethnic group had a well-established place, forming, as specialists claim, the so-called homo bucovinensis, as a model of a tolerant and lenient. In this way, we will observe the directions of the ethno-folkloric dynamism specific to the ethnic groups in Bukovina (Jews, Poles, Ukrainians, Hutsuls, Roma, Lipovans, etc.), analysing the way of updating the myth in these minorities and the role of the myth in contemporary society. Among the most important folklore manifestations, we will focus on three important elements: currently existing rites of passage (funeral, wedding), the image of the demonic in the collective mind and functions of pilgrimages, on the border between ritual and tourism. Due to the dynamism existing within contemporary society, some of these ethno-folkloric manifestations have undergone numerous changes, both in form and content, and thus we can talk about the so-called kitsch, as a contemporary element that is a component of the specific folklore within the ethnic groups in sight. The attempt to trivialize the ethnic specifics of minorities must be considered a negative effect of contemporary society, where preserving popular customs, traditions or gastronomic specifics no longer represents a special interest for current consumerism. The conclusion we have to reach illustrates the fact that ethnic groups become part of a collective identity where customs related to holidays, rites of passage, ceremonial events in human life require treaties with a necessary responsibility. Within the existing minorities in Bukovina, cultural tolerance is a value of the society, thus there is an awareness of the ethnic peculiarities of each area and a respect for them, at the

AI as a Co-Author? We Should Also Ask Philosophical (and Ethical) Questions

Dear Editors With great interest and attention, I read authors’ short but stimulating editorial articles, which also contain extremely valuable questions [1]. The questions posed by the authors and the emphasis on referred articles reflecting different perspectives seem to reflect content about the practical benefits, risks, and inevitability of the use of technology. In addition, it is seen that the valuable comments on the article focus on issues such as the risk of harm and publication ethics issues in academic use of AI [2,3]. Considering the discourse of the article’s authors, which invites discussion, it is seen that questions that go beyond mere responsibility or practical benefits or risks should also be asked. In this context, I think that questions based on philosophical and ethical foundations should also be asked. For example, What is AI’s ontological position as a writer is a very fundamental question. That is, does AI reflect a “particular” individual/entity as “a writer”, or does it reflect cognitive domination that has the power to access and process the knowledge of entire humanity easily, or does AI reflect a collective mind or "universal" as a product of the knowledge and cognitive history of humanity as a whole? I think these questions are notable for AI’s position as an author and whether that position is acceptable. Again, should AI be considered a tool (is given instrumental purpose) or as a value in itself (has intrinsic value)? As a fundamental question, this is also important for the acceptability or position of AI as an author. Without going into deep discussions for now, for example, how or what is the difference between AI as a tool and a classical data analysis tool? Does such a difference, if any, really warrant the attribution of authorship to AI? Questions like these seem important. Although different ethical discussions seem possible, the concept of responsibility to which the authors refer seems worth discussing. For example, it is also remarkable whether AI, as a responsible subject in itself, can also become a tool for other authors to avoid some responsibilities in research and publication ethics. It is known that such a debate exists in the field of clinical ethics [4]. As a result, as the article authors said, the authorship of artificial intelligence will lead to important discussions. Therefore, it will be necessary to consider philosophical (and ethical) questions about the position of artificial intelligence. Yours sincerely,

The Ottoman schools and their impact on the development of the intellectual movement in the country

The Ottoman schools played a central role in the formation of the collective mind of the thought and curriculum of the Ottoman Empire, and the research discussed the history of these schools since their inception, ascent, and then decline, and the research was divided into an introduction, a research summary, three topics and a conclusion. The first topic came under the title of the Ottoman schools from inception until the era of Muhammad al-Fateh, and the second topic was titled the development of the Ottoman schools from the era of al-Fateh until the era of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. The third topic dealt with the development of the Ottoman schools in the legal era, then their decline and backwardness in the era of weakness and the stagnation and decline that befell them and the reasons for that until the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1924.

Are You Happy with Your Experience? Determinants of Satisfaction with Virtual Teamwork in International Settings

ABSTRACT The paper presents the results of an investigation into the virtual teamwork of culturally mixed teams engaged in common projects in international settings. Data was collected from students attending four different universities on four continents (Asia, Europe, North America, and South America). They worked for a semester, in virtual teams, to solve problems for real businesses in Asia and/or Latin America. Each team worked with a specific client that asked them to make recommendations and develop action plans. A model was developed to understand the way satisfaction with teamwork outcome, as dependent variable, is fostered on antecedents such as global identification, collective mind, and team cohesiveness. The analysis, exploratory as structured, was conducted using the partial least squares method provided by SmartPLS. Results show the similarities and differences in behavior for different groups of students coming from different countries and their implications for teaching teams in a multicultural virtual environment.